Priest, Accused of Meeting Girl for Sex, Says He Did It for Research

By Tiffany Teasley
Fox 51
July 26, 2012

http://www.wogx.com/story/19114477/priest-accused-of-meeting-girl-for-sex-says-he-did-it-for-research


[with video]

The State Attorney's Office released video of investigators interviewing Brian Shriner, 46, a former Geneva School teacher and Episcopal priest at New Covenant Anglican Church in Winter Springs, shortly after his arrest.

Shriner was arrested in June, after he was accused of chatting with a detective posing as a 14-year-old girl online, investigators say he then traveled to Winter Springs to meet the minor for sex, instead he was met by deputies.

"I can guarantee nothing like this will ever happen with me again," said Shriner during the interview. "I was just planning on sitting and talking to her, I know this sounds crazy," he said.

During the interview Shriner gives investigators an explanation for what happened, telling them he's writing a novel, and he was meeting the girl for research.

"This is one aspect of the book," Shriner said. "This guy goes through a mid-life crisis where he works for California Soft -- there's a level of lust and there's several stories that develop on the level of lust, and I wanted to look at one of them to deal with this," Shriner said in the video.

Shriner also tells deputies in the video, that this isn't the first underage girl he's had explicit conversations with online.

"I had a lengthy conversation with one other one," he said.

At the end of the hour and half long interview Shriner broke down in tears, and also prayed.

Shriner is currently out on bond, awaiting a trail date in Orange County -- he's since been suspended from his church and fired from The Geneva School.